Disk playback device with reduced depth dimension

ABSTRACT

A connecting member connects a pair of holder plates toward the end of the holder plates at the recessed end in the direction in which the disk is inserted. By forming the holding member holding disks using three pieces, there is less deformation causes by high temperatures compared to integrally formed units. Also, since this connecting member only serves to connect the pair of holder plates, a thin rod-shaped connecting bar can be used. This allows the clearance between the disks held toward the back of the device and the rear panel to be minimized, thus contributing to a reduced depth dimension for the device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a disk playback device. Morespecifically, the present invention relates to a disk playback devicewherein the depth dimension of the device is reduced

There has been a greater demand for disk playback devices with smallerdepth dimensions, especially for automotive in-dash disk changersattached to a dashboard of an automobile. Therefore, there clearly is aneed to reduce the depth dimension of devices by allowing a disk beingplayed back to overlap, when viewed from above, with disks in a storageposition. In addition, the depth dimension should be further reduced byreassessing the shapes and structures of individual parts.

Conventional devices have an internal layout where a storing member,which holds disks by supporting the edges of disks, is disposed at thevery back of the device. The depth dimension of the device can then bereduced by positioning the rear panel of the device as close as possibleto the rearmost section of the disks held in the storing member.

In this case, the storing member must support the disk edges over anappropriate angular range. Thus, the storing member is interposedbetween the rearmost section of the disks stored in the storing memberand the rear panel. The width of the storing member at its rearmostsection must be reduced as much as possible.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a disk playbackdevice which overcomes the foregoing problems.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a disk playbackdevice wherein the overall depth dimension is significantly reduced.

Briefly stated, the present invention provides a connecting memberconnecting a pair of holder plates toward the end of the holder platesat the recessed end in the direction in which the disk is inserted. Byforming the holding member holding disks using three pieces, there isless deformation causes by high temperatures compared to integrallyformed units. Also, since this connecting member only serves to connectthe pair of holder plates, a thin rod-shaped connecting bar can be used.This allows the clearance between the disks held toward the back of thedevice and the rear panel to be minimized, thus contributing to areduced depth dimension for the device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided adisk playback device equipped with a disk holding device comprisingfirst and second holder plates for supporting a disk edge along anappropriate angular range, a connecting member connecting the first andsecond holder plates at far ends of a direction of disk insertion, andconveying means engaging with each of the first and second holderplates, thereby allowing the first and second holder plates to moveperpendicular to a recording surface of the disk and parallel to eachother.

According to another embodiment of the present invention there isprovided a disk playback device equipped with a disk holding devicecomprising a plurality of drive pulleys conveying the disk between adisk insertion/removal position and a disk playback position by engagingwith an edge of the disk, at least two of the plurality engaging withthe edge of the disk when the disk is brought to the disk playbackposition, guiding means supporting the disk between the guiding meansand the plurality of drive pulleys, and pulley/guide driving meansmoving the plurality of drive pulleys and the guiding means close to andaway from each other.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, there isprovided a disk playback device comprising conveying means, forconveying a disk between an insertion/removal position and a playbackposition by supporting an edge of the disk from either side, theconveying means being movable away from the disk when the disk is beingplayed back, a turntable rotating the disk, a damper clamping the diskto the turntable, a clamp arm extending roughly perpendicular to thedisk conveyance direction rotatably supporting the clamper, the clamparm having a bend, whereby when the conveying means is moved away fromthe disk, at least a section of the clamp arm overlapping with the diskconveying means is separated by a greater distance than other sectionsof the clamp arm.

According to a feature of the present invention, there is provided adisk playback device, holding a plurality of disks and conveying aselected disk from a holding position to a playback position to playback the selected disk, comprising first and second locking memberspassing through center holes of the plurality of disks positioned at theholding position, a lock arm pivotably supported by one of the first andsecond of locking members, and the lock arm pivoting to close a gapformed between the first and second locking members.

According to another feature of the present invention, there is provideda disk playback device comprising first and second conveying means forconveying recording media supporting a recording medium from eitherside, the first and second conveying means conveying the recordingmedium inserted from a recording media insertion opening to apredetermined position, a driving mechanism, driving at least one of thefirst and second conveying means so that the first and second conveyingmeans move close to and away from each other, detecting means fordetecting a gap between the first and second conveying means isincreased due to insertion of the recording medium between the first andsecond conveying means, and controlling means for controlling thedriving mechanism to drive the first and second conveying means inresponse to the detecting means, whereby the first and second conveyingmeans move to increase a gap between the first and second conveyingmeans.

According to a further feature of the present invention, there isprovided a disk playback device comprising a plurality of drive rollersabutting a recording medium inserted from a recording media insertionopening, the plurality conveying the recording medium to a predeterminedposition, driving means for rotating the plurality, supporting means formovably supporting a single drive roller, belonging to said plurality ofdrive rollers, disposed toward the recording media insertion opening,relative to the remainder of the plurality of drive rollers, anddetecting means for detecting a movement of the single drive rollertoward the recording media insertion opening accompanying insertion ofthe recording medium into the recording medium insertion opening.

According to still another feature of the present invention, there isprovided a disk playback device equipped with a disk conveying devicecomprising a plurality of drive pulleys conveying a recording medium byabutting an edge of the recording medium, a guide member, disposedfacing the plurality of drive pulleys, supporting the edge of therecording medium wherein the recording medium is interposed between theguide member and the plurality of drive pulleys, and a drive member,disposed roughly co-planar with a conveyance plane of the recordingmedium conveyed by the plurality of drive pulleys, rotating theplurality of drive pulleys by abutting each of the plurality of drivepulleys.

A disk playback device of the present invention includes a pair of diskholders which supports an edge of a disk along an appropriate angularrange. A connecting member, connecting the pair of disk holders towardthe recessed end of the direction in which the disk is inserted into thedisk holder. Additionally, the disk playback device of the presentinvention includes means for conveying, engaging with each of the pairof disk holders, thereby conveying the disk holders perpendicular to arecording surface of the disk.

The above, and other objects, features, and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent from the following description read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referencenumerals designate the same elements.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a statewhere a disk can be loaded.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a statewhere a disk is inserted.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a statewhere a disk has been brought to a playback position.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a diskplayback state.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a statewhere a disk has been brought to a holding position.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan drawing of a disk playback device in a statewhere a disk can be selected.

FIG. 7 is a front-view drawing of the disk playback device of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a front-view drawing of the disk playback device of FIG. 3.

FIG. 9 is a front-view drawing of the disk playback device of FIG. 4.

FIG. 10 is a side-view drawing of a screw shaft in a state where a diskholder 11 is selected.

FIG. 11 is a side-view drawing of a screw shaft in a state where a diskholder 14 is selected.

FIG. 12 is a side-view drawing of a screw shaft in a state where a diskholder 16 is selected.

FIG. 13 is a schematic plan drawing for the purpose of describing thestructure of slide plates according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a schematic plan drawing for the purpose of describing thestructure of slide plates according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a side-view drawing of a disk lock mechanism in an unlockedstate.

FIG. 16 is a front-view drawing of the disk lock mechanism of FIG. 15.

FIG. 17 is a cross-section drawing along the 17—17 line of FIG. 15.

FIG. 18 is a cross-section drawing along the 18—18 line of FIG. 15.

FIG. 19 is a side-view drawing of a disk lock mechanism in a lockedstate.

FIG. 20 is a perspective drawing of a disk lock mechanism in an unlockedstate.

FIG. 21 is a perspective drawing of a disk lock mechanism in a lockedstate.

FIG. 22 is a schematic circuit drawing of a disk playback deviceaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a cross-section drawing of a disk holder.

FIG. 24 is a cross-section drawing of a drive pulley.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the figures, the following is a description of anembodiment implementing the present invention.

Disk Holder

Referring to FIG. 1, a schematic plan drawing of a changer-type diskplayback device 1, capable of holding six disks, is shown. FIG. 1 showsan initial state where no disks are stored. Toward the rear of device 1,disk holders 11-16 (only uppermost disk holder 16 is shown) are stackedto support the edges of 12 cm disks. The support on disks provided bydisk holders 11-16 is only applied to the edges of the disks. Thus, evenif a disk is damaged due to contact with disk holders 11-16, theinfluence on the information recorded on the disk is minimized.

Referring to FIG. 23, there is shown a lateral cross-section drawing ofdisk holder 11. The following is a description of the structure of diskholder 11. Disk holder 11 is formed as a three-piece structure. Left andright holder plates 19 and 20 are molded from resin. A connecting bar 21connects holder plates 19 and 20. Holder plates 19 and 20 are formedwith disk supports 32, having square, C-shaped cross-sections andextending across a predetermined angular range. Disk supports 32 supportthe edge of a disk.

Holes 17 and 18 are on holder plates 19 and 20. Engagement pins 22 areprojections inside holes 17 and 18. Referring back to FIG. 1, engagementpins 22 fit into cam grooves 33 on screw shafts 30, to be describedlater, in order to move disk holders 11-16 in the directionperpendicular to the plane of the drawing. If disk holder 11 thermallyexpands, holder plates 19 and 20 will expand longitudinally along thelines connecting holes 17 and 18. To absorb this expansion, hole 17 isformed as an oval, slightly larger along this longitudinal direction.Other disk holders 12-16 are formed with the same structure as diskholder 11.

The arrows F-G extend along the depth direction of disk playback device1. In order to provide compactness in the F-G direction, it is importantto reduce, as much as possible, the distance between the rearmost end ofdisk playback device 1 and the end of the disks supported by diskholders 11-16 in the direction of the arrow F. In this embodiment,connecting bar 21, which connects holder plates 19 and 20, can performits function adequately with a diameter of about 1 mm. This contributestoward a reduced depth dimension for disk playback device 1. Also, sincethe support on the disks is divided up between holder plates 19 and 20,there is less deformation accompanying higher temperatures compared withan integral structure.

Screw Shaft

Referring to FIGS. 10 through 12, there are shown side-view drawings ofscrew shaft 30. In FIG. 10, first disk holder 11 is selected. In FIG.11, fourth disk holder 14 is selected. In FIG. 12, sixth disk holder 16is selected. The surface of the cylindrical screw shaft 30 is formedwith a single cam groove 33, into which engagement pin 22 is inserted. Aspur gear 34 is formed on the bottom end of each of screw shafts 30 tomesh with an appropriate screw shaft drive mechanism 82, formed from amotor, a reduction gear mechanism, and the like. This structure controlsthe direction and position of the rotation of screw shaft 30. The fourspur gears 34 are connected by a connecting mechanism, not shown in thedrawings, so that they are rotated in the same direction and with thesame rotation angle.

Disk Driving Mechanism

Referring again to FIG. 1, a disk driving mechanism 40, formed from aplurality of drive rollers or the like, is disposed on the left side,and a guide member 50 is disposed on the right side so that a disk canbe supported between disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50. Diskdriving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 serve as disk conveying meansto convey a disk inserted from an opening (not shown in the figure)formed on a front panel 2 of device 1 to either a playback position ordisk holders 11-16.

Disk driving mechanism 40 includes four drive rollers 41-44 disposedalong the disk conveyance direction, each with grooves to support theedge of the disk with its perimeter surface. Drive roller 41 rotatesaround a shaft 36 and is rotatably supported on a roller support plate48, which is pulled in a counter-clockwise direction. When a disk isinserted between drive roller 41 and guide member 50, roller supportplate 48 rotates clockwise in opposition to the pulling force. Apotentiometer 49 is disposed to detect this rotation position and therotation speed. A gear (not shown in the figure) is disposed on arotation shaft 37 of potentiometer 49. This gear meshes with a gear 35formed on roller support plate 48.

Drive rollers 42-44 are rotatably supported by rotation shafts 23-25,respectively, and are rotatably supported on roller arms 45-47, whichare pulled in the clockwise direction. A first timing belt 26,preferably having teeth on the inside, is used to drive drive rollers42-44. Timing belt 26 extends across the following parts in the ordershown: pulleys 171 and 172, drive roller 44, a pulley 29 attachedco-axially with rotation shaft 25 of roller arm 47, drive roller 43, apulley 28 attached co-axially with rotation shaft 24 of roller arm 46,drive roller 42, a pulley 27 attached co-axially with rotation shaft 23of roller arm 45, a tension pulley 173 pivotable to the positionindicated by the dotted lines in FIG. 1, a pulley 174 with a rotationaxis that serves as the pivot axis for tension pulley 173, and pulley171. Tension pulley 173 serves to keep the tension of timing belt 26constant. Timing belt 26 is positioned along the same plane as the planeon which the disk driven by drive rollers 42-44 is conveyed.

Referring to FIG. 24, there is shown a cross-section drawing of driveroller 42 when a disk 101 is abutting drive roller 42. The outerperimeter of timing belt 26 abuts drive roller 42 at a section oppositefrom where drive roller 42 abuts the disk. This causes drive roller 42to rotate. With this structure, there is no need to provide a gear orthe like to drive roller 42 on a plane different from the plane at whichdrive roller 42 abuts disk 101. Thus, the height dimension of the diskdriving mechanism 40 is reduced. A rubber ring 59 is disposed on drivepulleys 42-44 in order to improve the friction between disk 101 andtiming belt 26.

Drive rollers 42-44, which convey the disk by pressing against the edgeof the disk, are driven by first timing belt 26. A second timing belt76, preferably having teeth on the inside, is disposed to drive driveroller 41 and timing belt 26.

Second timing belt 76 is disposed on a main chassis 4 and is rotated inboth forward and reverse directions by a drive pulley 175. Drive pulley175 is rotated by a belt driving mechanism 84 disposed on a main chassis4 and formed from a motor, a reduction gear mechanism, and the like.Second timing belt 76 is wrapped around drive pulley 175 at apredetermined angle. Pulleys 176 and 177 are disposed on either side ofdrive pulley 175. Second timing belt 76 extends across drive pulley 175,pulleys 177, 178, 179 and 180, a pulley 181 attached co-axial to axis 36of roller support plate 48, pulleys 174, 182, 183, 176, and back todrive pulley 175. Pulley 174 is formed from two co-axial pulleys, withfirst timing belt 26 and second timing belt 76 being disposed ondifferent planes.

Guide member 50, formed with a square, C-shaped cross-section to supportthe edge of the disk, extends along the disk conveyance direction. Diskdriving mechanism 40 and guide members 50 are displaced parallel to eachother along the direction of the arrows, D-E in FIG. 1, due to aconnecting mechanism, to be described later. When guide member 50 ismoved an appropriate distance in the direction of arrow E, disk drivingmechanism 40 moves the same distance in the direction of arrow D.

Referring to FIG. 13, projections 54 and 55 are formed at positionsequidistant from the contact point between guide member 50 and the diskwhen the disk has been brought to the playback position. Drive rollers43 and 44 are also positioned in a similar manner equidistant from thisplayback position. Thus, when the disk is at the playback position, itis supported in a stable manner by projections 54 and 55 and driverrollers 43 and 44. The actuators of detector switches 56 and 57 projectat the ends of projections 54 and 55 in order to detect when the diskhas been brought to the playback position.

A linking mechanism allows disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50to move along the direction of the D-E arrows. The figure shows thestandby state from FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 14, there is shown a plan drawing of the linkingmechanism connecting disk drive mechanism 40 and guide member 50 in theplayback state.

A first slide plate 111 is guided to allow parallel displacementrelative to main chassis 4 along the D-E arrows. First slide plate 111supports roller arms 45-47, which rotatably support drive rollers 42-44,roller support plate 48, and pulleys 171-174, across which first timingbelt 26 extends. First slide plate 111 also supports pulleys 178-180,182 and 183, across which second timing belt 76 extends. First slideplate 111 has a rack 117 meshing with a pinion gear 118, which isrotated by a slide plate driving mechanism 85 formed from a motor, areduction gear, and the like.

A second slide plate 121 supports a guide member 50 and is guided toallow parallel movement relative to main chassis 4 along the D-E arrows.Second slide plate 121 has a rack 127 meshing with a pinion gear 118.When slide plate driving mechanism 85 rotates pinion gear 118counter-clockwise, disk driving mechanism 40, supported by the slideplate 111, moves in the direction of the arrow D. Meanwhile, guidemember 50, supported by slide plate 121, moves in the direction of thearrow E.

Drive pulley 175 and pulleys 176 and 177, which are adjacent to drivepulley 175, are supported by main chassis 4 so that they are unaffectedby the movement of first slide plate 111. Pulleys 175-177 are positionedto be at the same height as the other pulleys through an opening 119formed on first slide plate 111. Thus, if first slide plate 111, whichsupports drive rollers 41-44 serving as the driven members, is moved inthe direction of the arrows D-E, drive pulley 175 will move in thedirection of the arrows D-E between pulley 178 and pulley 183. Thus, adrive source for driving the driven member disposed on the movablemember is disposed on the fixed member.

By detecting the position of first slide plate 111, the diameter of thedisk being loaded is determined. To achieve this, a slide volume 135 isdisposed on main chassis 4, and an actuator 136 is attached to firstslide plate 111.

Slide volume 135 detects the following positions: the position of firstslide plate 111 in the standby state, allowing disk loading, as shown inFIG. 1, where the distance between disk driving mechanism 40 and guidemember 50 is no more than the diameter of an 8 cm disk; the position offirst slide plate 111 when an 8 cm disk is completely supported betweendisk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50; and the position of firstslide plate 111, as shown in FIG. 4, where disk driving mechanism 40 andguide member 50 are moved away from disk 101.

Disk Playback Mechanism

Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a front-view drawing correspondingto FIG. 1. A spindle motor 62, disposed on a mechanics chassis 63,rotates a turntable 61 on which a disk is mounted. A damper 71 isrotatably supported by a clamper arm 72 so that it can clamp a disk ontoturntable 61. Clamper arm 72 is pivotably supported to mechanics chassis63 by a shaft 73. Clamper 71 can move toward and away from turntable 61.Clamper arm 72 has a bend 74.

Referring to FIG. 9, when guide member 50 is moved to a position awayfrom the disk to allow the disk to be played back, an adequate distanceis formed between guide member 50 and damper arm 72.

A feed screw 65 is rotated by an appropriate motor (not shown in thefigure). An optical pickup 66 is disposed on mechanics chassis 63 sothat it can move along the radius of the disk when feed screw 65rotates. Information recorded on the disk is played back by applying alaser from optical pickup 66 to the disk while rotating the disk usingspindle motor 62, and then reading the reflected light. Playback meansis formed from at least turntable 61 and optical pickup 66.

A guide rail 67 is disposed on mechanics chassis 63 so that opticalpickup 66 is guided to move along the direction of the D-E arrows shownin FIG. 1. Mechanics chassis 63 moves along a guide groove 92, disposedon base chassis 3, in the direction of the F-G arrows shown in FIG. 1 bya mechanics chassis driving mechanism 86 formed from a motor and thelike. For clamp operations, mechanics chassis 63 can also moveperpendicular to the disk recording surface. In these clamp operations,when mechanics chassis 63 is moving toward the recording surface of thedisk, a connecting mechanism (not shown in the figure) causes damper arm72 to pivot around shaft 73 so that it approaches turntable 61. Thus,when the disk is being played back, the disk rotates on the same planeas the plane along which it is conveyed by disk driving mechanism 40.

Base chassis 3 is elastically supported by main chassis 4 by a damper91. Disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 are movably supportedon main chassis 4. Screw shaft 30, supporting disk holders 11-16 so thatthey can move vertically, is rotatably supported on main chassis 4.Thus, disk holders 11-16 and disk conveying means, formed from diskdriving mechanism 40, and guide member 50, are supported in device 1without the involvement of damper 91.

Disk Locking Mechanism

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 15-21, in order to prevent the disks heldin disk holders 11-16 from coming out in the direction of the arrow G, adisk locking mechanism 140, inserted into the center openings of thedisks, is disposed on main chassis 4. Disk locking mechanism 140 will bedescribed below. The unlocked state is shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 16,which are a side-view drawing and a front-view drawing, as well as FIG.17 and FIG. 18, which are a cross-section drawing along the 17—17 lineand a cross-section drawing along the 18—18 line, respectively. Thelocked state is shown in FIG. 19, which is a side-view drawing. And theunlocked and locked states are shown in FIG. 20 and FIG. 21, which areperspective drawings.

An upper lock bracket 141, disposed above the disk conveyance plane, isformed from an attachment section 142 used for attachment to a chassis(not shown in the figure) and a disk lock section 143. A cavity 144 isformed on disk lock section 143 to receive a locking arm, to bedescribed later.

A lower lock bracket 151, disposed below the disk conveyance plane, isformed in a roughly cylindrical shape, within which a disk lock nut 153is disposed so that it can move along the direction indicated by thearrows B-C. A cylindrical hole 154 is at the center section of disk locknut 153. A helical ridge projection (not shown in the figure) is on thesurface of hole 154. A cam shaft 156 has a cavity groove 155 on thesurface thereof in order to engage with the projecting ridge and movedisk lock nut 153 vertically. A spur gear 157 is on the lower section ofcam shaft 156. Spur gear 157 is exposed by cutting away a section ofattachment section 152 of lower lock bracket 151.

A disk lock arm 159 is pivotably supported by a shaft 158 above lowerlock bracket 151. Disk lock arm 159 connects to disk lock nut 153 by apin 160.

Referring to FIG. 16, shaft 158 is parallel to the arrows D-E, i.e., theconveyance plane of disk 101, and is oriented perpendicular to theconveyance direction of disk 101 within device 1.

When spur gear 157 rotates clockwise by a lock arm driving mechanism 87formed from a motor, a reduction gear, and the like, the engagementbetween cavity groove 155, formed on cam shaft 156, and the projectingridge of disk lock nut 153 move disk lock nut 153 in the direction ofthe arrow B.

Referring to FIG. 15, this movement causes disk lock arm 159 to pivot 90degrees counter-clockwise around shaft 158, closing the gap formed atthe disk conveyance plane between upper lock bracket 141 and lower lockbracket 151. Upper lock bracket 141 is inserted into the center openingsof the disks positioned above the disk aligned with the disk conveyanceplane, while lower lock bracket 151 is inserted in the center openingsof the lower disks, thus preventing the disks held in disk holders 11-16from coming out.

Circuit Structure

Referring to FIG. 22, there is shown a circuit diagram of the mainelements in device 1. Using optical pickup 66, a laser is applied todisk 101, rotates at a predetermined speed by spindle motor 62. Aplayback signal obtained from the reflected light is amplified by an RFamp 161 and is then sent to a signal processing circuit 162. Signalprocessing circuit 162 performs appropriate signal processing on theplayback signal, such as demodulation and error correction. The signalis then converted to an analog signal by a D/A converter 163 and isoutput from an output terminal 164.

The playback signal is sent to a servo circuit 165 so that focus servoand tracking servo operations are performed on optical pickup 66 and sothat spindle motor 62 rotates at an appropriate speed.

A microprocessor 166, controlling operations of device 1, controlssignal processing circuit 162 and servo circuit 165. Microprocessor 166also controls the various operations of screw shaft driving mechanism82, belt driving mechanism 84, slide plate driving mechanism 85,mechanics chassis driving mechanism 86, and lock arm driving mechanism87, described above.

Description of Operations

The following is a description of the operations performed in thestructure described above when disk 101 having a 12 cm diameter isinserted into device 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 7, 13, in the loading standby state where a diskcan be inserted, the distance between guide member 50 and first drivingroller 41 closest to front panel 2 is set to be slightly smaller thanthe diameter of an 8 cm disk.

Referring to FIG. 10, in this standby state disk holder 11 is alignedwith the disk conveyance plane. Disk 101 is inserted through the opening(not shown in the figure) formed on front panel 2.

Referring to FIG. 2, disk 101 causes support plate 48, supporting driveroller 41, to pivot clockwise around shaft 36, moving against thepulling force on support plate 48. This causes gear 35 of support plate48 to rotate rotation shaft 37 of potentiometer 49. This is accompaniedby a change in the resistance of potentiometer 49, allowing device 1 todetect that disk 101 is inserted.

When insertion of disk 101 is detected, belt driving mechanism 84rotates drive pulley 175 clockwise. As a result, drive belt 76 rotatesconnected pulleys 178, 179, 181, 174 and 183 clockwise and pulleys 177,180, 182 and 176 counter-clockwise. Thus, drive roller 41, which mesheswith pulley 181, rotates counter-clockwise.

The clockwise rotation of pulley 174 causes drive belt 26 to rotateconnected pulleys 171,172,29,28 and 27 clockwise and drive rollers42-44, and pulley 173 counter-clockwise. The counter-clockwise rotationof drive rollers 41-44 causes disk 101, supported between the rollersand guide member 50, to be conveyed in the direction of the arrow F.

Referring to FIG. 13, slide plate driving mechanism 85 rotates piniongear 118 counter-clockwise based on instructions from microprocessor166. As a result, first slide plate 111 moves in the direction of thearrow D and second slide plate 121 moves in the direction of the arrow Ewhile staying parallel to each other.

Potentiometer 49 detects movement of drive roller 41 in order to detectinsertion of disk 101. Thus, if a disk inserted into device 1 isoff-center to the right and does not abut drive roller 41, slide platedriving mechanism 85 will not activate. To eliminate this problem, it ispossible to provide a detector switch or the like, on guide member 50,in order to detect contact with disk 101. The two detection elementscould then work together for the control operations of slide platedriving mechanism 85.

Slide plate driving mechanism 85 moves first slide plate 111 and secondslide plate 121 away from each other. This causes roller support plate48, which was pivoted clockwise by disk 101, to rotatecounter-clockwise. When this change in the opposite direction isdetected by potentiometer 49, slide plate driving mechanism 85 rotatespinion gear 118 clockwise so that first slide plate 111 and second slideplate 121 move toward disk 101.

With these control operations, when disk 101 is inserted into device 1,disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 move away from each otherby slide plate driving mechanism 85. Thus, it is not the user's diskinsertion force that moves disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50apart. Instead, control operations are performed so that disk drivingmechanism 40 and guide member 50 move away from each other when a diskis inserted into device 1. Thus, a disk can be loaded with littleinsertion force.

Furthermore, when disk 101 is inserted, disk 101 will be completelyinserted between disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 so thatthe positions of first and second slide plates 111 and 121 stay fixed.By detecting the position of slide plate 111 using slide volume 135,microprocessor 166 recognizes the inserted disk 101 as a 12 cm disk.Then, slide plate driving mechanism 85 rotates pinion gear 118 clockwiseso that, during disk loading, disk 101 is conveyed in the direction ofthe arrow F while disk 101 is supported in a stable manner with apredetermined supporting pressure between disk driving mechanism 40 andguide member 50.

During this loading operation, disk 101 passes driving rollers 42 and 43and is conveyed to the playback position. When passing these rollers,first and second slide plates 111 and 121 maintain their positions whileroller arms 45 and 46, which support drive rollers 42 and 43 pivotcounter-clockwise against pulling forces. When roller arms 45 and 46pivot, tension pulley 173 pivots clockwise around the rotation axis ofpulley 174, thus maintaining a fixed tension for timing belt 26.

Referring to FIG. 7, disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 aremovably supported on main chassis 4. Thus, when disk 101 is inserted,the user can obtain a hard insertion “feel” that is unaffected by damper91.

The rotation of drive rollers 41-44 cause disk 101 to move in thedirection of the arrow F toward the playback position. The actuators ofdetector switches 56 and 57 are pressed by the edge of disk 101, anddisk 101 is conveyed to the playback position where both detectorswitches 56 and 57 are on. At this playback position, disk 101 is not incontact with disk holder 11, which is positioned at the same height.

Next, mechanics chassis driving mechanism 86 causes mechanics chassis 63and damper 71 to approach each other toward disk 101. This causes disk101 to be clamped between turntable 61 and damper 71.

Then, slide plate driving mechanism 85 moves disk driving mechanism 40and guide member 50 in the direction of the arrow D and the arrow Erespectively, thus causing them to move away from disk 101. Then, disk101 rotates at an appropriate speed. This playback state is shown inFIG. 4 and FIG. 9, which is a front-view drawing thereof. This playbackposition is at the same height as the conveyance plane of disk 101.

Referring to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, clamp arm 72 is supported by mechanicschassis 63, which is supported on damper 91. Guide member 50 issupported on main chassis 4. In the playback state, vibration will causeclamp arm 72 to move, but adequate space is provided between clamp arm72 and guide member 50. Thus, since clamp arm 72, past bend 74, can beclose to disk 101, the height of the device is reduced.

The following is a description of how disk 101 is stored in disk holder11 after playback of disk 101 is completed, and how a different disk isstored in fourth disk holder 14. After playback of disk 101 iscompleted, slide plate driving mechanism 85 moves disk driving mechanism40 and guide member 50 in the direction of the arrow E and the arrow Drespectively, thus placing disk 101 between drive rollers 43 and 44 andguide member 50. Then, mechanics chassis driving mechanism 86 movesmechanics chassis 63 and damper 71 away from each other and disk 101,thus releasing the clamped state of disk 101.

Then, roller driving mechanism 84 rotates drive rollers 41-44counter-clockwise, thus moving disk 101 in the direction of the arrow F,and disk 101 is inserted into disk holder 11. Then, slide plate drivingmechanism 85 moves disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50 awayfrom each other.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 14, first and second slide plate 111 and 121are moved to positions where drive roller 44 and guide member 50 aremoved away from disk 101, as shown in the figures.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 20, after disk 101 is stored in disk holder11, lock arm driving mechanism 87 rotates spur gear 157 clockwise andmoves disk lock nut 153, engaged with cam shaft 156, in the direction ofthe arrow B. This rotation causes disk lock arm 159 to pivot 90 degreescounter-clockwise around shaft 158. The end of disk lock arm 159 engageswith cavity 144 formed on upper lock bracket 141 so that the diskconveyance plane is sealed. This causes disk lock arm 159 to be insertedthrough the center hole of disk 101, thus preventing disk 101 fromcoming out from disk holder 11. This locked state is shown in FIGS. 19and 21.

Disk lock arm 159 pivots in the direction by which disk 101 is conveyedto disk holder 11. Thus, if disk driving mechanism 40 has not conveyeddisk 101 completely to disk holder 11, disk lock arm 159 will pressagainst the edge of the center hole of disk 101 to move disk 101,thereby allowing disk 101 to be stored reliably in disk holder 11.

Mechanism chassis driving mechanism 86 causes mechanism chassis 63 tomove along guide groove 92 in the direction of the arrow G.

Referring to FIG. 6, mechanism chassis 63 is brought to a standbyposition where there is no overlap with disk 101 being held in diskholder 11. Next, in order to select disk holder 14, screw shaft drivingmechanism 82 rotates screw shaft 30 clockwise.

Referring to FIG. 11, screw shaft 30 rotates until disk holder 14 isaligned with the disk conveyance plane. Then, slide plate drivingmechanism 85 moves first and second sliding plates 111 and 112.

Referring back to FIG. 1, disk driving mechanism 40 and guide member 50move to the standby position where a disk can be inserted.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 7, when an 8 cm disk is loaded from the loadingstandby position shown in the figures, the insertion of the 8 cm diskcauses drive roller 41 to rotate clockwise. As described above, slideplate driving mechanism 85 moves first and second slide plates 111 and121. Then, the 8 cm disk is supported completely between disk drivingmechanism 40 and guide member 50, and slide volume 135 is kept at afixed state for a predetermined time.

This static state of slide volume 135 allows the insertion of the 8 cmdisk to be detected. After detection, slide plate mechanism 85 pullsfirst and second slide plates 111 and 121 so that they support the 8 cmdisk. As with the case of the 12 cm disk, the loading operation for the8 cm disk performed by drive rollers 41-44 is stopped when detectorswitches 56 and 57 are in the on state.

In this embodiment, disk holders 11-16 cannot hold 8 cm disks. Thus,when the loading of an 8 cm disk is detected, conveyance of the 8 cmdisk from the playback position to the disk storing position isprohibited.

In the embodiment described above, a plurality of drive rollers is usedas the disk conveyance mechanism. However, the present invention is notrestricted to this, and it would be possible to us other driving meansas appropriate, e.g., a pair of pinch rollers having rotation axesparallel to the main plane of the disk.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

In the device according to the present invention as described above, aconnecting member connects a pair of holder plates toward the end of theholder plates at the recessed end in the direction in which the disk isinserted. By forming the holding member holding disks using threepieces, there is less deformation causes by high temperatures comparedto integrally formed units.

Also, since this connecting member only serves to connect the pair ofholder plates, a thin rod-shaped connecting bar can be used. This allowsthe clearance between the disks held toward the back of the device andthe rear panel to be minimized, thus contributing to a reduced depthdimension for the device.

Having described preferred embodiments of the invention with referenceto the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the inventionis not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various changesand modifications may be effected therein by one skilled in the artwithout departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as definedin the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A disk playback device equipped with a diskholding device comprising; first and second holder plates for supportinga disk edge along an appropriate angular range wherein said first andsecond holder plates engage a disk at opposing positions of said edge ofsaid disk; a connecting member connecting said first and second holderplates at far ends of a direction of disk insertion wherein said firstand second holder plates are expandable along a direction angularlyoffset from the direction of disk insertion and perpendicular to theangularly offset direction; and conveying means engaging with each ofsaid first and second holder plates, thereby allowing said first andsecond bolder plates to move perpendicular to a recording surface ofsaid disk and parallel to each other.
 2. The disk playback deviceaccording to claim 1 wherein said connecting member is a connecting barextending perpendicular to a direction of insertion of said disk towardsaid first and second holder plates.